Next-Generation Antivirus (NGAV): Explained

What is Next-Generation Antivirus (NGAV)?

Next-Generation Antivirus goes beyond signature-based detection by using AI, machine learning, and behavioral analysis to spot anomalies in real time. Unlike legacy AV that only flags “known bad files,” NGAV can detect and block fileless malware, zero-day exploits, and constantly evolving attacks that traditional antivirus misses. In short, NGAV protects against both known and unknown threats, without needing a patient zero.

Limitations of Traditional Antivirus

Threat landscape has changed, and traditional antivirus has failed to catch up with the sheer volume of cyberattacks both in terms of precision and speed. The following factors make traditional AV insufficient to safeguard your endpoints.

• Signature-only detection
  

  Completely dependent on a database of known malware samples, legacy antivirus cannot identify threats it hasn't seen before. This leaves it blind to zero-day attacks and new evolving threats that bypass signature-based defenses with ease.

• Delayed response
  

  Traditional antivirus reacts slowly since it relies on definition updates to recognize new malware. This lag inadvertently creates a critical window for threat actors to spread ransomware or steal data before defenses catch up.

• Fails against fileless attacks
  

  Modern attackers often exploit memory, scripts, and built-in system tools instead of dropping files. Legacy antivirus isn’t designed to see these stealthy methods, leaving organizations exposed.

• Reactive, not preventive
  

  Instead of blocking threats upfront, legacy AV mostly reacts after an attack has already executed. By then, systems may already be encrypted, data stolen, or business operations disrupted, making it purely a damage-control tool.

• No behavioural awareness
  

  If malicious activity doesn't match a known signature, traditional antivirus ignores it. Without behavioral analysis or anomaly detection, attackers can easily bypass defenses using slightly modified malware or new techniques.

• Resource-hungry
  

  Bulky updates, heavy system scans, and constant background processes make legacy AV a productivity killer. This resources lag means that endpoints slow down, employees get frustrated, and IT spends more time troubleshooting performance issues than strengthening defenses.

NGAV vs Traditional Antivirus: A Detailed Comparison:

• • Aspect
  • Detection Approach
  • Threat Coverage
  • Response time
  • Behaviour analysis
  • Protection against fileless attacks
  • Ransomware defense
  • AI and Machine Learning usage
  • System resource consumption
  • Offline protection
  • Incident insights
• • Traditional Antivirus
  • Signature-based detection reliant on known threat patterns.
  • Needs patient zero. Effective only against known malware but struggles with sophisticated, never-seen-before threats.
  • Dependency on periodic updates for spotting new threats might yield in delayed response.
  • Limited or absent behavioural monitoring.
  • No significant protection against in-memory or fileless attacks.
  • Less effective on ransomware, focuses on infected files cleanup post-attack.
  • Rarely used. Relies on static methods.
  • May slow down systems due to periodic full-system scans.
  • Limited. Requires regular definition updates.
  • Basic logs and alerts with minimal forensic analysis.
• • Next-Gen Antivirus
  • AI-driven, behavior-based engine that detects even unknown threats.
  • Doesn't require patient zero. Protects against known, unknown, and fileless threats, including zero-day exploits.
  • Real-time detection and neutralization of threats without relying on definition updates.
  • Continuously analyzes system and application behaviour to flag anomalies.
  • Advanced memory scanning to detect and block fileless and in-memory threats.
  • Proactively detects and stops ransomware at various stages, including encryption attempts, while also assisting in recovery.
  • AI and deep learning continuously adapt to evolving cyberattack strategies.
  • Lightweight, continuous scanning with minimal impact on system performance.
  • Edge-based detection for offline threats, ensuring protection even without internet connectivity.
  • Provides detailed incident forensics, including attack chain mapping and IoC identification.

Why Choose ManageEngine NGAV?

• Detection that never sleeps
  

  NGAV Detects anomalies in real time, even if they don’t match known malware signatures based on malicious intent. It's multi-layered detection is tuned to detect signatures, malicious intent and suspicious behaviour preventing fileless threats.

• Zero-day protection
  

  Stop sophisticated attacks before they lead to a breach, even before a patch or fix is in place. Unlike traditional antivirus, NGAV eliminates the need for a “patient zero”. You get to experience protection against the unknown right after deploying our agent.

• Ransomware protection and recovery
  

  Detect and block ransomware attempts during execution and encryption. NGAV acts as a failsafe, limiting the attack spread by isolating the infected device and recover the infected (encrypted) files within a single click.

• Reduce dependency on definition updates
  

  NGAV eliminates the need to heavily rely on virus definition updates. With NGAV, there's no waiting for regular updates, ensuring your devices even in low internet/isolated environments are protected. Instead of definition updates, Malware Protection Plus' Cloud AV based detection enables it to learn from real world threats and update its malware arsenal for better threat remediation.

• Detailed forensic insights and reporting
  

  Gain full visibility into not just when an attack happens, but how an attack unfolds. Unlike traditional AV, NGAV provides deep incident forensics, including attack chain mapping and IoC identification, helping you trace root causes, affected assets and threat behaviours via contextual process tress. Your security teams are better equipped to handle malware threats and stay in control.

• Stop malware and reverse the damage, instantly
  

  Our NGAV goes a step further with autonomous malware disinfection, delivering a hands-free approach to containment, cleanup, and restoration. It automatically isolates the malware, disconnects the endpoint from the network (if needed), and begins disinfecting compromised files and registries, in real time.

How Malware Protection Plus Stands Out as NGAV Software

• Enterprise-ready
  

  ManageEngine NGAV is scalable for large networks, with granular policy control and centralized reporting.

• Offline protection
  

  Our edge-based detection doesn’t always need the cloud to protect against advanced, sophisticated threats. Stay secure, even offline.

• Light on system resources
  

  Our agent is optimized to ensure that continuous scanning that won’t bog down your endpoints and not strain your end users.

• Intuitive UI
  

  Designed for IT teams irrespective of their scale with no prerequisite and technical know-how. Easy to deploy and easy to manage.

• Group-Based Deployment
  

  Create dynamic endpoint groups and assign context-aware security policies allowing you to segment security practices based on the critical nature of resource.

Pro tip: Traditional AV is obsolete.Upgrade to Malware Protection Plus and stay ahead of attackers.

Conclusion:

Next-generation antivirus (NGAV) has become essential in defending modern organizations against rapidly evolving cyberthreats that traditional signature-based antivirus can no longer keep up with. By combining AI, behavioural detection, and real-time threat intelligence, NGAV provides proactive protection against ransomware, fileless malware, and zero-day attacks—even in the absence of known signatures. Solutions like Malware Protection Plus strengthen an organization’s security posture by delivering deeper visibility, faster response, and stronger resilience across endpoints, ensuring that businesses stay protected against both current and emerging threats.

Meet the author

Manish Mandal

Manish is a cybersecurity and product marketing expert with ManageEngine's Unified Endpoint Management and Security solution. With over five years of experience, he leverages technical expertise and storytelling to create blogs, reports, and resources that empower IT leaders to build resilient defenses against modern cyber threats.